Back in the underground laboratory, after Orochimaru finished organizing his latest experimental data, he turned his attention to the intelligence report from Sand Village.
The three-day window had passed. Judging by the movements of Zetsu's clone, Nagato's operation—whatever it was—had likely concluded. Any further large-scale activity would drastically increase the risk of exposure.
Orochimaru also found himself facing shortages. The surgical materials allocated by the village were almost depleted, only enough to maintain a minimal number of visible and hidden operations over the next few days. Any large-scale procedures would have to wait until fresh supplies arrived—either from the village or from Sunagakure.
This period of downtime was a rare chance—perfect for laying the groundwork for future plans.
"Roran…" Orochimaru muttered, narrowing his eyes.
In the previous Zetsu fusion experiment, he deliberately avoided the three Great Holy Lands. This time was no different—even though the Shikkotsu Forest's natural energy was directly drawn from the earth's leylines.
There simply weren't many places in the ninja world where natural energy was abundant. And tracking them down one by one would be troublesome. That's why Orochimaru was leaning toward the suggestion of the Lamp God.
Roran was an ideal location. Even setting aside its natural energy, it was isolated, located in a remote desert in the western Wind Country, and its ruling power was weak. Even if the experiments caused a stir, there was no risk of another Takigakure disaster.
This round of first-generation cell transplantation would be even riskier than the last. Orochimaru wouldn't allow a single flaw.
"That's strange..."
The Lamp God poked his head over and blinked in surprise. "That country still exists?"
In the original timeline, Naruto had been chasing a Suna rogue ninja when a natural energy anomaly caused him to time-travel over a decade into the past. There, he and a younger Minato defeated the rogue—but not before Roran's destruction due to the sealing of the Dragon Vein.
"Why do you say that?" Orochimaru glanced at the Lamp God. "Even though Roran is just a small fringe nation, it's always relied on that oasis. I've heard of it too. Why are you so sure it shouldn't exist?"
"Nothing. Just figured a place like that would've been swallowed up by sandstorms by now."
The Lamp God quickly adjusted his stance. Though Roran had been destroyed in the original future timeline, that was due to Naruto's intervention. In this altered reality, many things had changed. The rogue ninja may not even exist. Roran's survival wasn't out of the question. And without time-travel, the sealing of the Dragon Vein never occurred.
No need to press further, he thought.
Orochimaru accepted the explanation without digging deeper and continued reading the Sand Village dossier.
Despite being called a "country," Roran was really just a small town of two to three thousand people—known poetically as the "Desert Pearl."
Though nominally under the jurisdiction of the Wind Country and Sunagakure, it paid taxes in exchange for autonomy. Sand ninja within Roran had to obey local laws.
Sunagakure had considered seizing the town to ease its financial woes, but Roran was simply too remote—and more importantly, its queen had control over a time bomb.
"The Dragon Vein has a will of its own…"
Orochimaru frowned. According to the intel, every queen of Roran across generations had the ability to commune with the Dragon Vein. If the bloodline were severed, the town might be destroyed altogether.
"It's more like a vague, instinctive consciousness. Barely comparable to a newborn."
The Lamp God stroked his chin. "Depending on how much chaos your procedure causes, it's safer to get the Queen's cooperation."
Orochimaru silently agreed. The Sacred Tree in Takigakure was supposed to be reused, but the 'Serpentis ' consumed it, leaving a lingering mess.
Now, the transplant subject was a half-human, half-snake creature. Even without full knowledge of the effects of the first-generation cells, anything could go wrong.
But convincing the Queen of Roran to cooperate wouldn't be easy. Orochimaru needed to broker a deal with her while preparing for the possibility of destroying Roran altogether—just in case she turned on him.
"I'll deal with it later," he said quietly, closing the file and leaning back with closed eyes.
Compared to the Sacred Tree in Takigakure, Roran was much more troublesome. The Dragon Vein's natural energy was less stable and not easily controlled.
But right now, his real concern was the Akatsuki.
If he couldn't make it through the next week safely, he'd have to face Nagato head-on while minimizing village casualties.
Orochimaru licked his lips.
"Tch… What move will you make next?"
---
A few days later, in Rain Village, inside the Black Tower Laboratory…
Shinno dragged a restrained Jōnin from a vat of green culture fluid. Wiping the slime from the subject's chest, he pierced it with a scalpel and made a downward incision.
Instead of blood, fibrous tissue was revealed beneath the skin.
"Lord Pain, look."
Shinno's face beamed. "The operation was successful."
Pain showed no emotion. Behind him, Hiruko
and Kabuto had mixed expressions. Their gazes shifted toward the oversized, twisted trees now growing inside the lab.
"You sacrificed five Chūnin and one Jōnin for this one success. What's there to be proud of?"
Konan's voice was cold. "Could you guarantee success if you did another one?"
"Well… more testing is needed," Shinno admitted, still smiling. "But this breakthrough—from zero to one—is monumental. As long as we continue, the success rate will improve."
His respectful tone didn't hide his confidence. The credit—or blame—would be shared, but since Shinno was the least important of the trio, he'd been chosen to deliver the bad news.
Pain eyed the recovering ninja and asked calmly,
"How long until the success rate reaches practical application levels?"
A 50% chance of survival wouldn't cut it. Not even outlaws gamble with those odds. They needed an 80–90% success rate at minimum.
"I'm afraid that won't be possible any time soon," Shinno replied. "This type of transplant will never reach a guaranteed 100%. Orochimaru must be using some secret technique."
Pain didn't argue. That explanation sounded plausible. He glanced at Kabuto, who adjusted his glasses and smiled.
"I've already shared everything I know. There's no information I'm withholding."
Shinno added gravely, "That's Orochimaru we're talking about. Who knows what hidden methods he's using?"
His speech was long and full of praise for Orochimaru. The core message: we're not incompetent—he's just too powerful.
Pain was already inclined to view Orochimaru with suspicion and now found Shinno's flattery oddly persuasive.
But Hiruko scoffed in frustration. He knew better than to speak out—saying "If you can do better, then do it yourself" would only backfire.
And in truth, he couldn't do better.
Kabuto smirked inwardly. Had they followed Orochimaru's original plan, half the current casualties might've been avoided. But after just three days on their own, the team's efficiency had halved. The trio had used that time to explore loopholes, slow progress, and hoard knowledge.
"I didn't want to do this…"
Kabuto sighed and smiled. "But I have another method."
He handed each of them a document.
The papers detailed a new workflow, breaking the procedure into smaller steps, with each member only responsible for a single part.
It was more efficient—but also limiting. None of them would have full oversight of the entire operation.
This wasn't what they wanted. They had joined to acquire forbidden knowledge—not play the role of screwdrivers.
Hiruko bristled. "What's the meaning of this?"
"You had your chance," Kabuto said, turning to Pain. "With this approach, I can raise the success rate to 80% within ten days."
Pain was direct. "Why didn't you do this from the beginning?"
"I was being considerate."
Kabuto shrugged. "This method may kill their motivation. I gave them space to prove themselves. They failed."
He swept his gaze across the three researchers.
"If any of you don't want to participate, you're free to withdraw."
His smile didn't reach his narrowed eyes.
The three scowled but said nothing. They all knew Pain was watching—and that walking away would likely mean death. Sabotage wouldn't help either; they'd just be replaced.
Kabuto was confident. The success of the physical enhancement surgery was Orochimaru's plan—and he wouldn't let these fools ruin it.
"Since there are no objections, we'll proceed."
He turned back to Pain. "Please leave it to me."
"Very well."
Pain nodded and then, without warning, raised a hand. The Jōnin who had just survived the procedure was suddenly lifted by the throat.
Ka-ka-ka…
His face turned red as he choked.
"Enhanced healing… impressive. But not invincible."
Pain released him. The Jōnin gasped for breath, slumped on the floor.
The message was clear: don't disappoint me.
The other researchers—veterans though they were—understood the gravity of the warning.
"Looks like the boss is pissed," Kabuto said casually. "I suggest you all focus. Don't make us all look bad."
---
Atop the Black Spire…
Pain approached Konan. "Contact Kakuzu, Sasori, and the others. We raid Konoha in three days."
"So soon?"
Konan was taken aback. "Orochimaru and Tsunade are both there. It'll be suicide."
"It's fine. This time, I'll join in person."
"You mean… the real you?" Konan looked alarmed. "Nagato, think carefully. Orochimaru's sensing ability is… strange. If you show up, it's a huge risk."
"It's worth it."
Pain's voice was calm. "Kabuto needs more time. But Orochimaru has already seized the initiative. We can't allow him to continue unchallenged."
Even if it meant drawing attention from the other villages—Nagato was done waiting.
_____________________
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